FLOR500, Garden 210
John King Cheyney
(ca. 1858–1939)
In 1891, John King Cheyney founded the Anclote and Rock Island Sponge Company in the Tarpon Springs area. He first harvested sponges from the floor of the Gulf of Mexico by hooking them from boats. In 1897, John Cocoris, a Greek sponge buyer told Cheyney about how sponge divers in Greece wore diving suits that allowed them to spend hours underwater collecting sponge. Cheyney recruited hundreds of sponge divers from Greece who came to Tarpon Springs to work in the industry. Tarpon Springs remains home to a vibrant Greek community.

In 1891, John King Cheyney founded the Anclote and Rock Island Sponge Company in the Tarpon Springs area. He first harvested sponges from the floor of the Gulf of Mexico by hooking them from boats. In 1897, John Cocoris, a Greek sponge buyer told Cheyney about how sponge divers in Greece wore diving suits that allowed them to spend hours underwater collecting sponge. Cheyney recruited hundreds of sponge divers from Greece who came to Tarpon Springs to work in the industry. Tarpon Springs remains home to a vibrant Greek community.